This invention relates to flexible covers which protect various portions of vehicles from environmental factors such as sun, snow, frost, and dirt, and more particularly to a design to prevent theft of such covers.
A protective cover for a vehicle should afford optimum protection while at the same time being durable, convenient and secure from theft. It should not in itself have the potential to cause damage to the vehicle.
Exposure to sunlight is a major cause of deterioration of the plastic and rubber parts of vehicles. Portions of the vehicle interior, such as the dashboard are particularly susceptible to discoloration and cracking because they are directly exposed to sunlight through the windshield and side windows. The prior art includes several types of window covers designed for such protection that are placed either inside or outside the vehicle.
Among the protective covers for use inside are Venetian blinds, unfoldable fans, and flexible fabric covers laid directly over the dashboard. Venetian blinds are most suitable for the side and rear windows because they are generally semi-permanently installed and they would partially obstruct the driver's view if placed inside the windshield. However, covering large expanses of curved glass, such as the rear windows of many cars, is cumbersome. Further, Venetian blinds require modifications to the vehicle for their attachment, which mar the appearance even when they are not in place.
Unfoldable fans, made from individual petals fastened together at a common pivot point, give some solar protection when placed in windows. However, they require some modification of the vehicle for their attachment. They also cannot completely cover a window because the protection area is limited to a portion of a circle which is determined by the length of the petals and placement of the pivot.
Specific covers for parts of the interior, such as the dashboard have been used to give protection to individual items. These covers may need Velcro or other fasteners permanently attached to the vehicle to hold them in place.
All inside covers allow sunlight to enter the vehicle and thus do not prevent the interior from being heated. They protect only what is in their shadow from direct exposure to the sun.
External covers have the advantage of more fully protecting against the sun because the light never enters the vehicle. In addition, they can also protect against other environmental factors such as snow, frost and dirt. However, prior designs have a number of shortcomings. Those that rely on clips to hold them in place, such as the design of U.S. Pat. No. 4,049,036 are tedious to install and adjust. The clips also have the potential for scratching the vehicle at the attachment points. Covers held on by weights, such as sandbags, necessitate moving the weights during installation and removal. Yet other covers require the installation of snaps, or other fasteners, to the vehicle to mate with a similar fastener on the edges of the cover. Such an installation alters the appearance, and perhaps the performance, of the vehicle.
Covers that make use of the existing attachment opportunities on a vehicle are thus to be preferred. One such design is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,599,066. The ends of the windshield cover disclosed therein includes an extension at either end which is just long enough to be captured between each side door and its frame. In addition, an upper and lower elastic strap is attached to each end for extension into the vehicle to hold the cover in place. Further, each of the upper straps includes a suction cup to attach the strap to the interior surface of the windshield. This makes for a complicated and time consuming attachment procedure. This cover, like all other prior art external covers, is vulnerable to theft by simply unfastening them or pulling them free of the doors.
The cover of the present invention gives optimum environmental protection by being placed externally, uses existing attachment sites on the vehicle, can be applied quickly, and cannot be stolen without destroying its utility. The cover is made from flexible material, and its shape is tailored to the portion of the vehicle to be covered, such as the windshield. It clamps in place between articulating parts of the vehicle, such as between the door and door frame. The portions of the cover to be clamped extend into the interior of the vehicle and terminate in thickened beads which are filled with a solid shaft or resilient material. The bead is sized so that it cannot be withdrawn from the interior of the vehicle without opening the door. If the door is locked, the cover can only be removed by cutting it, which renders it useless since it is now too short to be captured by the doors or other moveable exterior surfaces of the vehicle.